A Letter To Mommies-to-Be

Dear Mommies-to-Be,

You are beautiful. Amidst swollen ankles, clothes that don't fit, and feeling like a mess. You are beautiful. I don't know how many times I can say it. You are beautiful. I know how being pregnant can mess with your self image. You are beautiful. Your body is changing and doing things that you had no idea it could do. You are beautiful. People may comment on how "you're glowing" and you may look at them with disdain. You are beautiful. You're body is doing amazing things, do you realize that? And you are beautiful. Do you get what I'm trying to say? You are beautiful.

Enjoy those last few weeks of those baby kicks and punches. They are wonderful. Yes, there are times that your little one just enjoys bouncing on your bladder sending you to the bathroom every five seconds and it seems to be driving you insane. Enjoy them. You will miss them when they are gone (and at least while they are in the womb, they're not leaving bruises from their ever continuing kicking you and discovering their new legs). Memorize those kicks and punches. They are special and they are wonderful. Enjoy them.

Don't worry about stretch marks. Don't stress about getting back to "pre-baby" weight. Enjoy what your body is doing. Don't wish the time away. Those last few weeks of pregnancy are precious. They are filled with anticipation and wonder, along with a bundle of nerves. Your life is never going to be the same. It is about to change for the better. Do you remember the Grinch and how his heart grew 2 sizes in one day? That will be your heart. You will hold your precious little one, and though you've already grown to love them, the instant they place that beautiful baby in your arms, your heart will grown exponentially.

Enjoy the last few weeks with your significant other. Love each other and dream about what is to come. Take those nesting instincts and run with them! It will be hard to get much done when the baby gets here. But that's okay.

And in case you forgot...You are beautiful. Cankles and all. You are so incredibly beautiful. I hope and pray you never forget that. You are beautiful.

Love,
Alli

Comparisons

I think it's funny looking at these little comparisons. She's always been such a chunk, even in the womb!

Summertime Outfits - From My Kid's Closet

Can I just say, that I have a serious blog crush on Callie from Through Clouded Glass (that's not weird is it? Haha). She has two adorable children and her youngest is a girl about a month older than Bug! I love reading about her family and learning from her. She's such an inspiration!

Anyway, her and Allison from Sweatpants and High Heels have started a blog hop sharing outfits from our kids' closets. I loved the idea and just knew I would have to jump on the bandwagon. Every other week would have a different theme, and you just have to find an outfit that matches the theme.

This weeks theme: Summertime outfits.

We've been living in cotton rompers this summer. They are easy, light, and I feel that they are perfect for this hot and muggy Georgia weather. 

I wish I could tell you where I got this romper from, but it's a hand-me-down. 90% of her clothes are hand-me-downs and I love them!

Mommy Moments Blog Hop!

Hey mamas!
Welcome back for another great week of Mommy Moments Link Ups! Thank you for linking up and for spreading the word last week! We love all of the great posts!

The most viewed link from last week's Mommy Moments was a birth story! Yay for another little life being brought into this world. Birth stories are the best. This week's belongs to Julia from The Everyday Mom. Her post was titled Myles Birth Story Part I

Check out that cute baby bump on her...and then stop by her blog to see her little man Myles!

Our guest host this week is Jennifer from First Comes Love. She has a lovely little blog that you definitely should visit and follow:)

Now it's time to link up your posts! All you have to do is...

1. Follow Host: The Life Of Faith 

 Co-Hosts: The Not Quite Military Wife, Beautiful Family Affairs and The Mrs. 
Guest host: First Comes Love

2. Link up your post!
Post can include anything related to mommy-hood, children, homemaking, pregnancy etc. If you aren't a mom yet, feel free to link up your preparation for motherhood, your journey as you try to conceive, or even a post that would be encouraging to the other moms in the party!

3. Add the Mommy Moments button to your post or blog so everyone knows where you are linking up!

4. Explore some of the other posts in the link-up and say hello to some new blog friends! 

5. Tweet or Share the link up on Facebook so we can all make even more friends!

Tweet

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P.S. We will be having a new guest host every week! Want to be a guest host of the Mommy Moments Blog Hop? Send Faith a message at farmprincess14{at}gmail{dot}com. We would love to have you!

Friday's Letters

Dear Bug, I'm sorry you're not feeling well. I think you're teething, so tooth, please come through sooner than later. Dear Hubs, I love that I get to see your during the day and eat dinner with you! But it makes me sad when you have to leave again. Dear Weekend, There is lots that I want to get done, so please cooperate. Dear Beach, I hear you calling me. Unfortunately, I can't answer the calling. Dear Hubs, I'm so proud of you!!

Hank and Bug: Best Friends!

Photo Dump

//who needs sleep? not this girl!//toes are yummy, Mommy//look Daddy! i'm Super Baby!//

//i swear i feed my child//yummy toes//me, i'm not up to anything//

//a bulldawg dressed in tiger's clothes//father's day//silly faces//

//enjoying father's day by the lake//happy girl in her onesie dedicated to her daddy//i love my girl//

Mommies of Daughters

I'll admit, I worry about my daughter in later life. I worry about the way people will treat her, the hurt she will feel, and the pressures that "friends" will put onto her. I remember what it was like to be a teenager. It wasn't easy.

Yes, I realize I have a while before I really have to worry about it all. I always go back to Matthew 6:24-34 when I begin worrying about things...

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

It's a hard concept for me to understand. I worry about things. I just do, even though I know I shouldn't.

One thing I worry about is teaching my daughter about modesty. Something I definitely struggled with when I was younger. I wanted the boys to "notice me" but I went about it for all the wrong reasons.

There's a new video floating around FaceBook that I thought I would share about modesty and bathing suits. I will tell you this Mama now proudly wears a really cute one piece (thanks Keira), but this is one thing I wish I had heard when I was in middle or high school.

It's food for thought.

Do any other mommies of daughters out there worry about this too?